The name means “salad in the style of Capri”. It’s a simple but delicious dish from the Italian region of Campania, made of sliced fresh buffalo mozzarella, tomatoes and basil, seasoned with salt, and olive oil. In Italy, unlike most salads, it is usually served as an antipasto (starter or appetizer) not a contorno (side dish).
While it’s unknown whether the salad actually originated on Capri, it became popular after being served there to Egypt’s King Farouk in the 1950s.
Some variations include adding chopped garlic, parsley, and various sauces, like Balsamic vinegar, Italian dressing, etc. King Farouk reportedly enjoyed it as a sandwich filling. Some people serve it atop pieces of baguette or other bread. There’s a little Italian deli by my house that serves a Caprese sandwich and it’s nothing short of scrumptious. There are countless ways to enjoy this simple little salad.
Last night I went out to my vegetable gardens to see if anything was ready for picking. Little did I know my four cherry tomato plants were bursting with ripe little treats.
With the unusually hot weather we’ve been having the past month or so (upper 90s and low 100s) I’m not surprised I haven’t had this many to pick every day. My plants are full of ripe and unripe little round balls and frankly I can’t keep up. Tonight I thought I better get a head start and start eating.
I have a few basil plants in my herb garden. I love basil. The taste, the smell, everything about it. Even if I never put a delicious leaf in my mouth, it would make me happy just to put the leaves up to my nose and inhale. Easily one of my top favorite smells. I put basil in everything. In fact, this morning I made little muffin pan omelettes and used the tomatoes and fresh basil. Thank you Bonnie, from recipeshappen for the recipe inspiration. If you’re not familiar with her blog, check it out, it’s fun.
Since my garden has been producing such a wealth of tomatoes, and I always have the fresh basil, Caprese salad is my go-to for a light, refreshing, homegrown treat. One of the best things about Caprese is that there aren’t really specific ratios you have to follow. Just cut up or slice any type of tomatoes, cut up or tear the leaves of the basil (some are small enough to just throw in as is), add the cheese and dress as you like. For me personally, I like to add balsamic vinegar and olive oil.
If you’re like me, you don’t always have a block of fresh mozzarella in the fridge and I guess you could even use the shredded stuff for pizzas. But what I do always have on hand is string cheese (it’s the perfect low-calorie snack for after a work-out). Some of you may not be familiar with string cheese. What is it you ask? Why mozzarella of course. So named because you can peel it from one end or the other and it comes away in a “string”. Anyway… I take out my handy dandy kitchen shears and cut little discs. It’s perfect.
This is a great little salad and one that’s so simple to make (especially when most of the ingredients come from your garden).
What’s growing in your garden?
My Bungalow Days 